Activists Who Threw Soup At Van Gogh Painting Insist Queer People Stand Up To Injustice

The Just Stop Oil activist who threw soup over Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, in protest against the severity of the climate crisis, has called for queer people to fight against other injustices in society. 

Two climate activists, Anna Holland, 20, and Phoebe Plummer, 21, went viral in October this year after they threw the contents of tomato soup all over Van Gogh’s 1888 painting Sunflowers at London’s National Gallery on Friday. The painting is estimated to cost around  $84.2 million.

‘Brought To Surface How Easily People Resort To Homophobic Comments’

Holland spoke to Pink News, detailing the anti-LGBTQI hate that they had experienced since the climate protest stunt had broken through mainstream media. 

“If I had a pound for every comment I’d received since the action based around my queerness, I would be able to afford my energy bills,” Holland said. 

The 20-year-old stated that the choice of the ‘right-wing press’ to focus on both their and fellow activist, Phoebe’s queerness was a way for them to “try and ridicule us as individuals, and therefore ridicule our action, and therefore ridicule Just Stop Oil in general.” 

“It has really brought to the surface just how easily people will resort to homophobic comments and general homophobia, when they are angry at you, and when you publicly do something to cause that anger,” Holland added. 

Soup Got People Talking

In an interview with Frieze, Holland responded to the question “Why use an artwork to stage a protest” by stating that using a piece of large cultural value was imperative to getting people to talk about climate change and the demands of the group they are involved in, Just Stop Oil. 

“So far, we’ve seen 33 million people in Pakistan displaced by apocalyptic floods, 36 million have had their lives absolutely ruined by the famines in East Africa. Yet, all it took was two young people to throw soup at a painting to get people talking more than they have done in such a long time about the climate crisis,” Holland said. 

Frieze interviewer Andrew Durbin asked both Holland and Plummer whether they thought about the history of protest in formulating their own action, mentioning the link between the history of art and the history of “provocative gestures.” 

Holland confirmed their use of  non-violent direct-action tactics, and that they had taken inspiration from movements including the Civil Rights Movement, the Suffragettes, and the queer movement. 

“We’re both queer people. And the reason we’re able to go to university, the reason we’re able to vote, the reason we’re able to someday marry the people we love is because of people who have taken part in civil disobedience and non-violent direct action before us,” Plummer added. 

‘How We Win The Right To a Future’

Holland spoke to Pink News explaining the ‘common thread’ in history which has seen minorities suffering “worse” whenever “any sort of mass disaster or mass destruction happens.”  

They discussed the ongoing struggle with the winter energy crisis in the UK which will see two-thirds of UK families “forced into fuel poverty.”

“We’re going to see people being forced to choose between heating their homes and feeding themselves and their children. And considering how many queer people are already being forced into homelessness, forced into dangerous situations… queer people who already have incredibly limited access to facilities like food banks are going to suffer even more,” Holland said. 

Holland asserted a need for queer people to “translate our anger into action,” and to continue fighting against injustices, reflecting on past movements which showed that this was the way to “get things done.” 

“That’s how we win our rights back. That’s how we win the right to a future. It doesn’t matter how scared I am getting arrested, because what will happen if I don’t fight, and if we don’t win, is so much scarier to me,” Holland said.